Power is a Black Dog
by Son Rhandi
Summary: Not exactly your average MummArch fic with an alternate ending. Mummymon is haunted by predictiions of his and Arukenimon's death brought to him by a 'black dog.' Can he figure out what to do before the prediction comes true? (*COMPLETE*)
1. 'Message from the Monster Dog'

****

Disclaimer: Let's be honest, shall we? If I owned Digimon, I wouldn't be here writing fanfiction about it. I'll leave the legal jazz to Toei and Saban, and stick with this. Enjoy.

****

Power is a Black Dog

By Son Rhandi

Chapter 1: 'Message from the Monster Dog'

Darkness.

All that was there was a sickening, festering, blinding darkness. 

A void where no light could penetrate was where Mummymon was trapped with nowhere to go. No matter where he ran, whatever the direction, it never led anywhere, only to more darkness. All he could do was stand there, filled with fear and helplessness.

There was no escape.

'Take a look, you pathetic loser, you worthless swine, you scum of the universe! You, who are lower than the worms that crawl in the dirt, cast your eyes on me!'

The voice boomed and echoed throughout the dark void. It wasn't human. Well, not totally human. That much he could tell. More like some sort of animal feigning speech through slurring its snarls. Suddenly, a pair of eyes glowing blood red faded into existence. The rest of the face followed suit. Mummymon's eye widened when the disembodied head and claws of the figure came into sight.

A dog. A black dog.

No, not a dog. Not quite. The ears were much too large for that. The creature appeared to be much more similar to a wolf or a jackal than man's tamed companion. _'Do you see?!' _The beast pulled its 'lips' back in an attempt to speak._ 'Now open your ears, as well! I have a riddle for you! From Ankhmon comes Styxmon, from Styxmon comes Amuhtmon, and from Amuhtmon comes Mummymon. But do you know what comes from Mummymon?'_

The digimon hung his head. He didn't know nor did he care. All he wanted was to escape the void and the creature of the same color. The beast took Mummymon's silence to be ignorance and continued. '_Graahh, that's what I thought…'_

Without warning, one of the bodiless claws lashed out and slashed the left side Mummymon's face, inertia demanding he move with it. He felt the unforgiving pain of the assault all too well, but even as his blood leaked out and formed a puddle on the non-existent floor, he did not flinch. He merely looked up at the creature, which opened its mouth slightly to form a toothy grin, and glared. 

The creature turned its claws to Mummymon, holding them up for all to see. _'Do you recognize these claws, corpse puppet?'_ He eyed the talons steadily, then looked away, seeming almost ashamed.

"…They're mine…" He whispered, not wanting to believe such a thing, much less hear it coming from his own mouth. The beast threw its head back for a nauseating laugh, which sounded like a dog trying to regurgitate. 

__

'That's right!' It shouted with glee. _'They're** yours**!' _This time, the other claw slashed at his chest, creating ribbons out of his blue overcoat and injuring the skin._ 'From Mummymon comes the invincible judging beast! The masterless black dog of power!! You can become what you see before you! Not a snarling monster, but a god of death!' _With every sentence the creature spoke, it attacked a fresh part of the digimon's body, until all that remained were shrapnel of what used to be clothing and a bloody Mummymon.

He did not wince. Not even once.

The beast began its disgusting laugh again and resumed its speech. _'Mummymon! Only when you gain both eyes can you see things more clearly! But do so quickly! For if you delay, you'll lose the blood red spider and your life as well!'_

"'Blood red spider..?' Are you talking about Arukenimon?" He inquired with a slight hint of desperation in his voice. But that was all the information the black dog would divulge. _'My predecessor, remember this well…' _were his last words before retreating back into the darkness from whence he came.

"Wait!" Mummymon cried out. "Tell me! What's going to happen to Arukenimon?!" His shouts went unheard. Whatever force that was supporting him earlier suddenly gave out, and the surrounding abyss shattered like shards of broken glass. And he plummeted, faster, faster, faster, with no end in sight. Until he hit bottom…

…to find himself on the cabin floor.


	2. 'To This, He Simply Said, 'No''

****

Power is a Black Dog

By Son Rhandi

Chapter 2: 'To This, He Simply Said, "No"'

It was seventeen minutes past the fifth hour when Mummymon awoke to the common sights of their cabin near Mt. Fuji. The sun had barely risen and skies were a plethora of oranges and golds. All things in nature seemed to take on a glow of their own as they were complimented with the good graces of the then red-orange sun. A very beautiful sight, indeed. Mummymon slowly rose to his knees and placed his hands on his face. No cuts, no gashes, no blood. Good.

"Was it just a dream..?" He inquired aloud, then clasped a hand over his mouth, forgetting that Oikawa and Arukenimon were still sleeping. _No, it wasn't a dream. It was a nightmare…_ Thought he, as he pondered the meaning of what the dark beast had said to him…

__

'From Mummymon comes the invincible judging beast! The masterless black dog of power!! You can become what you see before you! Not a snarling monster, but a god of death! 

"What did it mean? A god of death?" Oops. He did it again. This time, Oikawa stirred a bit and mumbled something about turning the volume on the television down, then resumed his slumber. Mummymon breathed a sigh of relief. His boss would be angry with him if he roused him from sleep, and his lady would be even angrier if he did from hers, so it was decided better to go someplace where he wouldn't risk waking either of them. Casting a look to the window, outside seemed to be the best option.

The digimon ever so quietly slid the door shut behind him. The breath he held was slowly exhaled, and he watched as it became visible in the cold air all around, giving him some mild amusement. A deep layer of snow blanketed the ground, he took notice. It had snowed last night, as was commonplace that time of year. It was all so… serene… The snow on the ground, the trees all around, and, of course, Mt. Fuji in the distance. They all reminded him so much of the things he loved about Arukenimon. The snow resembled her pale, flawless skin. The bare trees, tall and thin, were like her frame, and Mt. Fuji? Her strength and majestic beauty.

Mummymon felt a blush creep up his face and sighed languidly. If only… Wait. Hadn't the nightmare dog mentioned something about his Arukeni?

__

'Only when you gain both eyes can you see things more clearly! But do so quickly! For if you delay, you'll lose the blood red spider and your life as well!'

"I could lose Arukenimon..?" Never mind losing his own life; the thought of Arukenimon deceased was absolutely terrifying to him. Once, Oikawa had told him that someone he loved for died four years ago. Mummymon had thought about what it would be like if his Arukeni died… …The tears kept flowing and just wouldn't stop…

He felt those same tears welling up once again, and quickly refocused his attentions to interpreting that… dream? Nightmare? It felt too real to have been just a night vision. Perhaps it was a premonition? Whatever it was, it was causing him undue irritation and stress.

"I don't understand. It just doesn't seem right... " He walked the small stoop and planted his feet in the snow, which gave a muffled crunch under his weight. Solemnly, he looked to the sky, as if trying to find an answer written in the clouds, perhaps even looking to some semblance of a god in the heavens. After some time, he brought his head back down to level and parted his lips in a wide grin.

"I'll make… a snow-Arukeni." 

He had oft watched children in the park playing in the stuff, making snowmen, snow angels, even little forts, and wondered what all that was like, but he was more content to observe from afar. But there was no sign of anyone for miles, and the two inside had no intention of getting up this early in the day, so he was free to do as he pleased for now. Mummymon brought his knees to the snow, laid his cane to rest on the stoop, and took to the task of creating a tribute to the apple of his eye. 

* * *

"There. Finished."

The digimon took a few steps back to admire his work. The fruit of his labor was a rough, almost crude figure of his Arukeni in her true form. He had stripped the branches from the barren trees nearby to form its arms, legs, and horns. He gathered many a pine needle to pile upon its head to create some aspect of hair, and even pawed the dirt to find two perfectly round pebbles for its eyes. To anyone else, it would look like a ragged, raw and just plain ugly display of snow clumps, but not to him. To him, this was an extension of his love for his lady in red, standing proud and just in the winter morn.

He hoped she would like it.

Just then, he heard a rapping at the glass panel. Turning around, he saw that Oikawa was the source of the noise. Oikawa, looking his usual somber self, gestured for him to come back inside and stuffed his hands in the pockets of his purple trenchcoat. Mummymon blinked. _The boss is up already? How long have I been out here, anyway..?_ Not really wanting to leave his masterpiece, the digimon sighed, relocated his cane, and trudged his way back to the cabin.

* * *

"Playing in the snow, Mummymon..?"

"Hmm?" The digimon's attention was caught as he slid the door shut one more time. 

"Never mind. It's not important. Go and fix breakfast. I'd have Arukenimon do it, but she can't even boil water."

Mummymon chuckled, knowing he shouldn't, but it was quite true. The last time she tried to make toast- toast, mind you-, she nearly set the whole place ablaze. He quickly slipped out of his boots and into a pair of house slippers and scuttled to the kitchen, but not before inquiring about her whereabouts. "Say, boss, where is Arukeni, anyway?"

Oikawa shrugged. "Showering up, I guess. Now, hurry up and fix something before she gets out. The last thing I want to hear this early in the morning is one of her usual rants about how hungry she is."

The mon chuckled a little louder this time as entered the kitchen, grabbing his apron and tying it loosely around his trim waist. As he rummaged through the refrigerator for something to prepare for the three of them, his thoughts floated back to the nightvision.

"'Only when I have both eyes…'" He muttered to himself, clutching three eggs in his massive hand and placing them into a bowl on the counter. Mummymon brought his hand to the right side of his face. Where there should have been his second eye, was met with just a smooth, unbroken patch of skin. He had always been a cyclops throughout all his stages. To him, it was just as natural as having two eyes was to everyone else, so what was all this nonsense about gaining another eye?

Mummymon laughed at his own ineptitude. "Of course. It was just a nonsense dream," he reassured himself. "Probably just from something I ate last night. Yes, that's it for sure..!" 

That may have been what he was telling himself, but a gut feeling was telling him that there was a bigger picture to all of this. Humans are the only animals that train themselves to ignore their instincts. This was probably the human part of Mummymon showing itself, but of course, that aspect of himself was still unknown to him. Quiet happy with his delusion, the mon continued with his task of cooking. 

Luckily for both himself and Oikawa, the breakfast of egg on toast and coffee was completed a split-second before Arukenimon stepped out of the bathroom, dampened hair and all. The human and womon sat down to their respective places at the table, Oikawa at the head, Arukeni at the right side, but Mummymon's spot was empty. The mon, looking a bit tense, scurried to the steamy bathroom and locked the door behind him, then silently slipped out of his gijinka and into his true bandaged form. Mummymon placed his rifle at the tub's edge and began to slowly unravel the bandages covering his hands until his bare charcoal skin showed itself. 

"…It really did have my claws…" 

The mon scrutinized the palms of his hands and tips of his talons in disgust. The thought of that hateful, hurtful, snarling **monster** turned his stomach. There was no way- no **way-** that he could ever be connected to a bloodlustful beast like that. It wasn't possible, it wasn't probable…

It wasn't real.

"No. None of it was real. It was nothing more than a dream, so what am I getting all worked up about?" He gave a little half-hearted laugh. It was only a bad dream, right? Now all he had to do was bring himself to believe that…


	3. 'Victory is Ours..?'

****

Power is a Black Dog

By Son Rhandi

Chapter 3: **'Victory is Ours..?'**

It came again that night, that dark demon of dreams, to strip away his dignity. He could feel the burning pain of the creature's claws- his own claws- scarring his skin, drawing his blood, grazing his soul, and always, **always** with that revolting laugh.

__

"Kyah-kah kah kah kah ka-hah! You're in de-ni-al; you should be-lieve me! You're in de-ni-al; I'll help you see things clearly! You're in…"

This time, the creature had the gall to taunt him about it- in singsong fashion, no less- as the dark void carried the tune and the brutal swipes kept the beat… Oddly enough, more of the beast had become visible. This time, its forearms penetrated the pitch black to reveal a familiar gray skin that darkened to charcoal at its lower arms to connect to the claws. The void, too, did not seem so dark the second time around, as if it was a plume of storm clouds clearing ever so slowly. Was an answer for all this was being revealed? Perhaps.

It was that early morning that Mummymon was again relieved to find no… Wait. What was that on his pillow? Was it… blood? Yes, drops of blood. The mon raced to the bathroom and threw himself in front of the mirror. What he felt when he met his own image was nothing but pure terror…

The expanse of where his right eye should have been was cut- no, _carved_ into in the shape of an eye, but surprisingly wasn't bleeding very much despite the deep penetration. He wanted to scream, but all he could manage was a tiny squeak. Like mad, he turned on the faucet and began to wash the wound furiously, not caring that he was drenching his coat and gloves in the process. The mon could barely keep his hands steady and began to feel nauseated as the water became red and clouded.

Choking back the taste of gall in his mouth, Mummymon leaned on the sink and turned off the water. After a few seconds of clutching the basin for support, he realized that he needed to stop the bleeding and opened the cabinet behind the mirror. There, he found gauze, cotton balls, a bottle of alcohol, and a few of those jumbo band-aids for knees and elbows. The digimon knew just how to use these, as he tended to Arukeni's minor cuts and scrapes as well as his own many times in the past. With quivering hands, he went to address his wound, hissing quietly at the sting of the alcohol, and sighing in relief when he was finally finished.

The band-aid contrasting greatly to his skin was sure to be noticed, he figured that much already. What could he tell Oikawa or Arukenimon if they asked? No, there would be no 'ifs'; they were obligated to inquire about it. More importantly, how did he ever get such a wound? He didn't even want to turn to the possibility of the nightmare dog, but knew no other explanation could be offered. This had become more than just a nightmare or a premonition. Nay, this was now part of a horrible and gruesome reality, from which any escape seemed nil. 

Just then, he remembered the blood on his pillow. It would have to be washed right away, as not to arouse any unnecessary suspicions from the others. He also remembered the agenda for today. They were to destroy another Destiny Stone. 

He'd have to work quickly, then, and hope that no one would be too curious of him.

* * *

"Acid Mist!"

"Necrophobia!"

And the digimon fell down. The spider and the bandaged corpse grinned menacingly. They were gaining an upper hand over the Chosen Children, who were vainly trying to protect yet another Destiny Stone.

Mummymon's rifle glinted in the light of the digital sun. He was feeling a bit elated, almost cocky. They had never beaten back those meddling kids and their pets this badly before. It was as if some new kind of power was surging through his veins. Never had his shots been so accurate, never had his blows landed so severely.

…It was great.

"My dear, I think this battle is won," said the mummy to his Arukeni, who was delivering a truckload of acid mist Nefertimon and Pegasusmon's way.

"Seems that way. What a good day we picked to create chaos..!" The two cackled. There was something in the air, it seemed, that favored the bastard children of both worlds in that fight. A stale wind blew, and the debris settled on the clifftop overhead skittered down in a cloud of dust.

Arukenimon flashed a toothy grin as she sampled the saline taste of blood gathering between her tongue and cheek. She had only tasted blood once before, when she sliced clean through a vein of a digimon who dared try to cross her. Needless to say, it was rather messy.

Mummymon had never felt this way before. His senses, which were dulled in his full digimon form, were tingling. His heart pounded in his ears, his blood ran cold, and suddenly, he became aware of all around him. He could hear everything; the tightening of his love's jaw as she clamped down to form a sadistic smile, the pounding hearts of those foolish children as they struggled to lift themselves from the dirt, and could even smell their fear. Yes, he was convinced that it was fear he smelled, for it was strong, and to be strong, it had to be in large amounts.

"V-Laser!!"

"Tail Hammer!!"

"Double Stars!"

The giant red arachnid evaded the attacks of the Chosen Children's pets with relative ease. Maybe it was the fact that they were actually winning, or perhaps it was her partner's sudden and unwanton fighting prowess that showed itself this day. Whatever it was, she, too, found herself fighting with a new strength. Arukenimon charged boldly and swiftly to ExVeemon, who was unable to react quickly enough, and sprayed her acid mist directly into his eyes. The dragon fell over, roaring and writhing in pain on the parched ground. Wide-eyed looks of concern went out to him from Ankylomon and Shurimon, then turned to angry glares when they cast their eyes upon the offender. The two poised to defend.

"Necrophobia!!"

Before they could even turn their heads completely, Mummymon blasted them full on courtesy of his rifle from behind and they went flying into the cliffside, reverting to Armadillomon and Hawkmon. As mentioned before, he was aware of **everything** around him… "Mwa ha ha ha! Not much use in defending the front when you're being attacked from the back, is there?" The bandaged one chortled.

Seizing the moment when ExVeemon was still temporarily blinded, Arukenimon leapt and began to trample the blue dragon's abdomen mercilessly, tenderizing his insides and making sure she got him with every single one of her legs good and deep. Once she spied him woofing up a blotch of blood, she knew that was enough, and gave him a square kick in the jaw to say 'good-bye'. With that, ExVeemon returned to the form of an unconscious Veemon. The Chosen Children looked on in terror. There was no real way they could help their digital partners without risking death, and that knowledge alone was enough for the dastardly duo.

"No one left but us," Nefertimon stated the obvious. "Shall we give it one final attack?" 

"All or nothing," Pegasusmon replied. "Let's do it!"

* * *

"Arukeni, in the sky..."

"Huh?" She lifted her head. "Nefertimon and Pegasusmon flying towards us, eh..? Nothing we can't handle. On my word…"

"Of course."

"Spider Thread!"

"Snake… Bandage!!"

* * *

"Star Shower!!" 

"Rosetta Stone!"

Both sides got their hits and hard knocks. Both the spider and the corpse got a hold of Pegasusmon; red thread bound his legs, and white bandages, his wings. Stones could be swatted away; however, stars weren't dispelled so easily. One of the now captive Pegasusmon's stars had mildly injured Arukenimon's arm. Mummymon knew that quite well, he had heard her skin tear as the star passed, and, to Pegasusmon's misfortune, he was not pleased.

Like lightning, Nefertimon dive-bombed to try and get the two away from her bound teammate. Mummymon merely side-stepped the sphinx, but she had managed to catch his partner in the gut and was now carrying her off in the direction of the Destiny Stone. He was far from worried. Rather, he laughed at this turn of events and carried on his business with the winged horse.

"You… hurt my Arukeni… I can't forgive you for that. Sorry." Pegasusmon thrashed and struggled and just did whatever he could to try and escape the bonds that held him, but to no avail. In fact, the only thing he succeeded in was tiring himself out. On bended knee, Mummymon took Pegasusmon's wings in his massive dark paws and unwrapped a small portion of the ligature, just enough to see the mon's feathers. He then grazed his fingers along a few of his golden feathers, scrutinizing and admiring them, strangely enough.

"Beautiful…" He murmured in a voice that didn't quite sound like his. He gave the loose feathers one last feel, then…

__

CRICK!!!

An excruciatingly painful bray and a giddy laugh later, Pegasusmon reverted to a pain-wracked Patamon. Mummymon had gathered both wings up in his mighty claws, then gripped and twisted as hard as he could, breaking the bones of both his wings in three places.

Meanwhile, Nefertimon had caught Arukenimon in the gut and was carrying her off. By fate or by chance, she was headed in the direction of the Destiny Stone. How perfect. The stage had already been set; all Arukenimon needed to do was give a starting time.

"Give it up, spider!" Nefertimon shouted. "The only way out of this is down!"

"Oh, I don't know about that…" Arukeni replied with a bit of arrogance, nonchalantly looking over her shoulder to calculate the distance between herself and the Destiny Stone. Just a few more seconds…

5… 4… 3… 2… 1… 0!

Arukenimon's large hands hooked on to Nefertimon's head and wrenched her in the direction of the ring surrounding the Stone, nearly snapping her neck in two in the process. Timing it just right, she used all the strength she had to hurl the sphinx to the ring, resulting in a booming metal clang as she collided with it, and returned to Gatomon, falling to the ground.

"Gatomon!" Hikari cried out with tears in her eyes. But of course, he cries went unheard by her digimon partner. Being knocked out cold can do that. 

"I'll take this gun…" Mummymon murmured, as he scooted Patamon onto his back with his foot. "…And aim it straight at your heart." He took the barrel of his gun to middle of his victim's pudgy chest. Finger on the trigger, he was ready to kill. "Good-bye…"

"Mummymon! Quickly! Come here and destroy this Stone!"

"Hrrm?" Apparently, the mon was too wrapped up in what he was doing to devote any attention to anything else. Due to Neferti's impact, the ring around the stone had cracked and fallen, and all that remain was a large and glowing stone sphere. Abandoning Patamon (to his immense relief), Mummymon rushed to meet the calls of his lady, crying out "Necrophobia!" to destroy the thing, which was easier than one would expect. After a few seconds of the wild laser, the stone cracked down the middle, then crumbled to the earth below.

They did it. They actually won a battle.

But the time for celebration was not then. Now was the time for a hasty retreat, before the children's pets recovered. Hopping the cliffholds as if they were some kind of super-evolved forms of mountain goat, the victors slipped back into their gijinka guises and high-tailed it out of there in the jeep as Ken and Stingmon arrived on the scene just in time to be too late.

* * *

The two laughed and joked outrageously on the entire cruise through the Digital World, not believing the turnout of recent events. They had finally gotten a taste of victory, and damn, was it ever good. The emotional high was so superb it was as if they were floating on air. Nothing else mattered right then. All they knew was they had **finally** come out on top after so many failures, so many losses, so many plans gone awry, and a celebration was in order. And what better way to celebrate than tearing up the Digital World with a sweet set of wheels? Mummymon and Arukenimon took their sweet time getting to the nearest computer to return to base, taking every out-of-the-way twist and turn possible to make the revelry last as long as possible. As of then, they were joyriding through a not-so-dense forest along an inviting river. Their laughter had died down at that point, and both were content to chatter- which was very unlike the spider to do- about their performance.

"You know, Mummymon- and don't let this go to your head-, I was quite impressed with your fighting earlier."

The mon blinked. He had actually received a compliment from his ladylove. The most lucky day! "Really?!" She nodded in response. 

"It was crazy. I didn't know who you were then. You were different, just kind of out there… like a fighting machine." Mummymon's heart swelled. This win must have put her in an extremely good mood for her to be saying things like that about him. "No…" She continued. "It was really more like you were relying purely on instinct, like some kind of beast."

The brakes screeched to a halt. Inertia demanded Arukenimon keep going even if the car wasn't and nearly bashed her skull on the dashboard. She turned to Mummymon with a 'what the hell are you doing?!' look, but her expression of anger was quickly replaced with one of shock as she noticed a small pool of blood in her companion's lap and a trail of blood flowing from his lips. 

"Kaaaaaaaah…… It burns..! It burns!"

Like mad, the mon, clutching the area where the band-aid was located, leapt from the car, fell to his knees and plunked his head in the river, re-emerging several seconds later and sucking in air. Shifting from his knees to his bum, Mummymon propped himself up with his arms and panted heavily, relieved that the severe burning had left his mystic wound.

"Mummymon..?" He turned to see his lady friend approaching him. This was not good. She has asked that morning why he had a band-aid on his face, and he made up a little fib and told her that he had been playing with a paddleball, and that was the result. She just scoffed and told him to fix breakfast. But now, his story wouldn't stick, especially with that blood that suddenly spewed from his mouth a minute ago.

"Mummymon, what the hell was that just now..?!" She did have concern for him, but didn't want to show the full extent of it, and hid it under a somewhat testy exterior.

"Um… What was… what?"

"Don't play dumb with me!" She yelled. "You were spilling blood, for god's sake! This has something to do with what you're covering up with that band-aid, doesn't it?!"

Trapped. Mummymon was at a loss, unable to think up anything to tell her. Suddenly, Arukenimon latched onto his arm and ripped off the band-aid, gaining a small yelp from its ex-wearer but nothing more. As soon as he felt the thing leave his face, he placed his over the 'eye' and guarded it from her sights. Sighing, she turned to flick the used sticky bandage away, and said in all seriousness, "Now, tell me what's going on."

Mummymon covered his mystic wound in shame. How could she tell him anything when he himself had no idea what was going on? Sooner or later, she'd find out about the wound anyway, wouldn't she? Steadily, he removed his hand and revealed to her what he'd been hiding.


	4. 'Hearts, Like Glass...'

****

Power is a Black Dog

By Son Rhandi

Chapter 4: **'Hearts, Like Glass…'**

Arukenimon was taken aback, speechless and mortified by the sight of her partner's mystic wound. 

"Mummymon, what happened..?" Her voice quivered. The other mon just stared at her, then hung his head low, wondering if it would be a good idea to tell her about his dreams with the nightmare dog.

"I… I'm not sure," he responded quietly. "I just got up this morning and it was there, bleeding." He thought he saw his Arukeni cringe slightly. "Please, just give me some time to figure this thing out, then I can tell you." He looked at her with his single sad eye and rose to return to the jeep.

She reached out and pulled him back by his collar. "Oh, no, you don't!" Did he honestly think she could just forget about something like this after what she just saw? The lady in red wouldn't have it. "Things like that don't just appear out of thin air! I know you know that there's more here than what you're telling me! You're going to tell me everything, and I mean **everything** about what's been going on..."

And so, he told her about the dreams, the abyssmal creature and what he spoke,** everything **she wanted to know about this. Arukenimon fell silent. It wasn't as if she didn't believe him… Well, actually, she didn't. All this of dreams about talking oracle dogs was incredibly hard to swallow. Her initial thought was that of self-mutilation, but Mummymon didn't seem like the type, and it also wasn't like him to make up such wild stories…

"Now do you see? Why I didn't want to show you?" Asked the blue-clad digimon, breaking the silence.

The lady in red sighed and coiled a tassle of hair around her finger, still choosing not to speak, or rather, not knowing what to say. "…You don't believe me, do you..?"

"I can't say I do," she replied as she turned her back to him and continued to play with her hair. She wasn't going to lie to him.

"Arukeni…" He whispered softly, easing his hands onto her arms with each word. "I know it's hard to believe. I can barely believe it, myself, but…" He then spun her around to face him. If it were any other day, he would have earned himself a harsh slap for touching her in that fashion, much less touching her at all. But now was not the time for any of that. "I need you to **try** and understand, for my sake. If you don't do anything for me for as long as we're together," Mummymon dropped to his knees and took her hands in his. "please just do **this**."

Arukenimon stared into that pleading golden eye of his and resisted the urge to touch a hand to his cheek in an attempt to comfort him. She turned away, not wishing to see that look any further. Slowly, she slipped her hands out of his and rubbed her arm with one.

"Let's go back," she spoke in her usual tone. "Oikawa's probably waiting for us." Mummymon nodded, not knowing whether or not to feel hurt, and brought himself to his feet, returning to the jeep. 

* * *

That awkward space that had settled itself with Arukenimon in the Digital World carried itself with her into the real world. She couldn't shake it, that strange, unsettling feeling about Mummymon and his mystic wound. What she found to be even stranger was the way she had acted towards him. She didn't hit or push him away or even cringe at his touch. Nay, she had actually been tolerant of his actions. Under any normal circumstance, he would have been slapped around to teach him not to try anything like that again. But that while ago, he just seemed so incredibly desperate that it punched a hole in the wall she put up around herself, even if just for a moment. She stood there, in front of the 'masterpiece' Mummymon created the day before, arms crossed and looking cross, not knowing whether to be humored or insulted. The lady in red leaned toward the former. After all, it did kind of look like her.

"Arukeni?"

She turned in response. It was Mummymon, walking towards her, the muffled crunch of the snow sounding off with every step. She took notice that he wore a patch over the jagged cut of unclear origins, which was a good thing, for she probably would have stared at it the entire time he was out there.

"…You covered it."

"Hmm? Yes. I thought it'd be better if you didn't have to see it."

"How considerate of you…" She said a bit more sarcastically than she had intended, but the mon in blue didn't seem to pick up on it and smiled meekly. "Do you like it? My snow sculpture of you? I saw you were out here looking at it, so I came out."

Arukenimon sniffed at the cold air. "Well, I wouldn't call it 'great', but it does look like me a little."

"So you like it?"

"Well, I don't hate it…"

Mummymon's little digi-heart was bursting at the seams. She didn't give him a definite 'yes, I like it,' but at least he knew it had some appeal. But quickly, his happiness dispersed, and guilt soon took its place. "Arukeni…"

"Yes..?"

"I'm sorry. I lied. …I didn't come out here to ask if you liked this. Actually, I wanted to talk to you about this thing going on."

She crossed her arms once again. "Well, go ahead. I'm listening." 

Breathing deep, Mummymon prepared to speak. "My first concern is of you. You know that. That… creature mentioned that if I don't gain my second eye, we could both die. …I don't want to lose you, my Arukeni. …I love you."

"I know," the lady in red replied, seemingly disinterested. "Just continue."

"And also, I don't know if you really care or not, but… I've been sensing my death for a while now. I don't know how. Maybe it's because I'm so close to death already, being a mummy and all. Whatever the reason, I think it's safe to say that I won't be around much--"

"Stop it."

"What?"

"I said, 'stop it,' Mummymon."

"But Aru—"

"What point of 'stop it' didn't you understand?!" She now yelled forcibly at him. "This stupid 'nightmare dog' thing is nothing more than a recurring dream, that little 'laceration' of yours is just the result of self-mutilation, and you're **not** going to die, goddammit, so stop saying things like that!!" And with that, she stormed past him, back to the cabin, slamming the sliding door shut. 

Mummymon was heartbroken, betrayed by the one he loved, the one person he hoped would understand. In a fit and rage of flowing tears, he raised a fist to that magnum opus he made from his love for **her **and punched straight through, the top half toppling to the ground and crumbling upon impact, then continued his assault on the rest, until all that stood were several clumps of snow, sticks, and pine needles where that snow-womon once resided. The mon panted heavily, his throat stinging from the cold air, and dropped to all four, not bothering to brush away his hot tears.

"Why..?" He asked in a whisper, his throat tight with ire and sadness. "Why couldn't you just understand..?!"

He struck the snow-laden ground again and again, just asking why things turned out the way they did, and sobbed quietly. As blue-clad digimon cried his heart out, and grief filled his world, the steady beat of the sounds of battle to come played loudly, but fell deaf on his ears.


	5. 'The God of Death'

****

Power is a Black Dog

By Son Rhandi

Chapter 5: 'The God of Death'

There was no time for the lady in red and the man in blue to sort things out, as the next two days had been a total whirlwind. That menace, Black War Greymon, showed up, questioning his existence, as usual. It was an answer he knew well, as it was the lady in red herself that had given him life. However, when it came to the question of her own appearance in this life, she had no explanation to offer. It had struck Arukenimon and Mummymon as a huge shock to find that Oikawa, a human, had created them. This made the whole phantom dog thing look like small potatoes. Not to mention the arrival of those Chosen Children fools. Lucky for the three of them, they chose to give their attentions to fighting Black War Greymon instead of taking chase to them right away. And so, they left them to deal with Arukeni's mistake. 

To Oikawa's pleasure, he had succeeded in absorbing the first Dark Spore, and early one, which had sprouted in a little girl. But to his extreme displeasure, Arukeni's mistake caught up with them in a chance meeting with Iori's grandfather, Hiroki's father. A torn Oikawa kept alternating between reminiscing- himself- and advancing for attack- his dark parasite-. The parasite won, however, as it fired its dark aura directly at the elderly man. The Chosen Children- Iori, especially- looked on in horror, anticipating the worst. Luckily, the worst was not to come, as Black War Greymon had taken the hit, thus protecting the old man. Mortally wounded, the doppelganger of War Greymon flew off, knowing what he had to do. With his flight, Oikawa and his two made a hasty getaway.

That night was spent not in sleep, but in planning. The Dark Spores planted in those children would be ready for harvest come tomorrow, and there was no room for error. Everything was calculated down to the wire, and they had to be ready for tomorrow, they just **had** to be, or else everything that lead up to this would be entirely in vain. That was day 1.

Day 2 was where the tension was thickest. They all gathered, those children with the spores, one by one to Heightenview Terrace, awaiting Oikawa and his crew, as the Chosen Children and theirs hid in the bushes, watching and waiting, as well. 

In what seemed like an instant, Oikawa, Arukenimon, and Mummymon appeared. The Chosen ones felt this was the time to confront the three, and charged to the area where they were gathered. Tensions were high on the side of the Chosen Children and theirs, but Oikawa and his were too overjoyed to be tense. Oikawa's dream of going to the Digital World was finally going to be realized. Unknown to him, Black War Greymon sealed the weak spot at Heightenview terrace the day before, so despite what the human thought, he was not going to arrive at his desired destination.

"This is it! It's opening!" With that, Oikawa and his children dashed off into the portal he tore into the real space, his two digimon straggling behind. The Chosen Children and their digimon followed suit.

* * *

"What is it? What's wrong? Why aren't you playing with the other children?"

"This is wrong. This isn't the Digital World."

"What are you talking about? Of course it's the Digital World..?"

"No, it's all wrong. This is **not** the Digital World."

The ugly reality of the child's perceptions was realized as the morose spiral background blazed and ugly pink. The scenery looked like something out of one of Van Gogh's works. So twisted, so grotesque, so not like the Digital World. To make matters worse, those meddling Chosen Children showed up, ready to make some noise. Just then, something no one expected happened: A mouth- a giant mouth- formed in the atmosphere above them, and to add to the confusion, spoke in Oiwaka's voice.

It was revealed to all that were present Oikawa's 4-year past of how he surrendered his body to fulfill his desire of travelling to the Digital World. Shame, grief, and anger swept over the human, upon discovering that all of his actions up until now were not his own. He was just a puppet for a parasite to play with. After sharing this information, the mouth disappeared, and Oikawa felt a ripping pain in his gut. He threw his head back as a glowing specter spewed from his mouth and formed a mirror image of himself. Humiliated, Oikawa advance, but the specter's leave left his body weak, and he fell to the ground.

Mummymon and Arukenimon leapt at the pseudo-Oikawa's order to distract the Chosen Children as he harvested the Dark Spores from the huddled group of frightened children. Unfortunately, they did not fare as well as they did three days prior. Still, they held them back long enough for pseudo-Oikawa to collect every last Dark Spore, and reveal himself for what he really was…

****

"Allow me to introduce myself! You may call me Burial Vamdemon!" The very embodiment of evil stood straight and tall. He was easily more than twice the size of both Arukenimon and Mummymon, beaming a sinister delight and setting his sights on Arukenimon. Without delay, Burial Vamdemon growled and seized the blood red spider -which emitted a scared little yelp-, by her neck, pulling her to his malicious smile.

"W-W-What are you doing?" Arukenimon stuttered. "I've been nothing but loyal to you, master!"

****

"You tell me!" The towering metal vampire retorted. **"I'm curious to know…"**

"Please! I don't know!" She pleaded. 

****

"Liar. Show me…" Burial Vamdemon raised his free fist high into the air and brought it down to collide with her bosom. She unleashed a fierce scream. All the children turned away, wincing from her anguished cries.

"Arukenimon!! What are you doing to her?!" A horrified Mummymon shouted the offender's way.

****

"I was only acting out what she was thinking," he turned back to the spider. **"You wouldn't be thinking about it if you didn't want it to happen, would you?"**

"Please, stop..!" She pleaded with the evil once again. "Just because I was thinking about it doesn't mean I want it to happen!"

****

"Such is the game," he tittered. **"What do you think I'll do next? Take your time."**

"Please, stop. Just please, please stop…"

That was enough. Mummymon rushed to his partner's aid, "Arukeni—OOF!" but was slapped away like one's own housefly by Burial Vamdemon, taking a rough landing on the floor. That last one had gotten him good, as there was blood flowing from his mouth and staining the bandages wrapped around his chin. He didn't care how many times he would be knocked down. He had to try and save his Arukenimon. He had to. Lifting himself to his feet, Mummymon prepared for another dash to the bloodsucker, but toppled over as soon as he put his best foot forward. He looked down to see what the problem was.

"God, no…"

His left leg brace was split and would no longer support his weight. Mummymon was frantic. He needed his brace to walk, and if just one was damaged, he couldn't do so. And if he couldn't walk, then he certainly couldn't run to help his blood red spider. All he could do now was watch as Burial Vamdemon beat the life out of his love, like everyone else. It pained his ears and heart to have to look on in horror, unable to do anything. 

****

"Reveal, reveal! What are you thinking?"

"KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!"

He could sense it. Her death was nigh, and he could do nothing to prevent it. He hadn't gained both eyes in time. Any and all hope was now non-existent. With a final, tearful cry, he shouted her name one last time. 

"ARUKENIMON!!!!"

Suddenly, he felt that unbearable burning sensation in the area of his mystic wound. And to his and everyone else's surprise, from it shot a blazing red laser directed straight at the arm which was holding his Arukenimon captive. Burial Vamdemon, unable to react quickly enough, hissed as his arm was burned off below the shoulder and fell to the solid floor, disintigrating into data. Lucky for the spider, the detached arm absorbed most of the impact while it still existed, but she took enough of it to slip into unconsciousness. Raving mad, the metal vampire fixed his sights on Mummymon, from whom the now dissipated laser had come. The laser not only burned off the enemy's arm, but also the bandages that once covered that section of its origin's face. With the bandages now gone, the only thing to see there was…

An eye. A second eye.

Burial Vamdemon drew nearer, infuriated by the loss of his arm. **"Death is too easy for you…"** He hissed at the disabled mummy. **"I think I'll just devour your core, instead."** The fellow lumbered over him and opened one of the mouths on his shoulders. **"Don't worry. It's only painful until you cease to exist..!"**

In an instant, Mummymon's eyes flashed red and a brilliant white aura blazed around him. He brought himself up to his feet, and was able to stand. He could do it on his own, without help from the braces. His body was in a sleepwalker state, moving of its own free will as he recessed deep into his mind, where the nightmare dog laid in wait, except this dog was no longer a dog. He stood a lean, muscular man with a carved helmet of a black jackal on it, a vest of gold and bronze, adorned with four lapis lazuli stones (two on each side) and silver shoulder guards. His abdomen, with its perfect six-pack, stayed bare as his white and blue striped tunic covered the necessaries and his clawed feet were nestled into sandals made of a malleable metal. His eyes were not visible, but they didn't need to be. Mummymon knew- oh, yes, he knew-, just who this was.

__

"Do you see now?" Asked the strange being. The mummy nodded. "Yes, I see."

__

"You know what to do, then?" 

"Yes."

__

"Alright then. You are the god of death now. Go forth and show the offender why monsters shouldn't challenge gods!"

"I understand."

Mummymon blinked, regaining full consciousness and knowing what had to be done. He looked up at that heartless creature, Burial Vamdemon, and called out with a smile:

"Mummymon! Digivolve to…"


	6. 'Blaze, Hero, Blaze'

****

Power is a Black Dog

By Son Rhandi

Chapter 6: 'Blaze, Hero, Blaze'

"Mummymon! Digivolve to…" His leg braces and rifle shattered to pieces. The guarder belt he sported snapped at the straps and the bandages covering his torso and appendages left him in a gust of wind. A carved black jackal helmet trimmed with gold materialized to fit his head and a heavy gold plate necklace with a scarab medal covered his collar. His bare chest was then covered in a magnificent armor of gold and bronze, with silver shoulder guards and four lapis lazuli stones, two for each pectoral. Blue and white stripes wrapped around his waste down to his knees to form a tapered tunic, and his feet were nestled in malleable metal sandals. It was done. Mummymon had become the invincible judging beast, the masterless dog of power, the god of death…

"Anubimon!!"

Everyone looked on in awe at the sight of Mummymon's Mega form, except Burial Vamdemon, who merely sneered scornfully. **"So, is that it?" **The evil one snarled, almost mocking him. **"You didn't even change your size..! What can you possibly hope to do against me?"**

Anubimon scoffed. "Evil always looks down on good with contempt. Our sizes merely represent the literal sense of that saying."

Burial Vamdemon opened his mouth wide and laughed maniacally. **"'Good'? Did you forget you were made from the darkness of a human heart and myself? There is nothing good about you!"**

"Perhaps, but I can change that." Anubimon raised his hand to the sky above. Out of thin air, a golden staff with a jagged saw-like blade appeared, to which he took his grip to and shouted: "Soul Conductor!!" From the blade, now glowing white-hot, an army of Bakemon-looking things rushed out to Burial Vamdemon and pelted him like so many hailstones, leaving large dents in his chest and abdomen.

"Come on!" Shouted Daisuke. "We've gotta help him!" The Chosen Children's digimon opted to assist the Mega and leapt to his aid. For whatever reason, whether it was to protect them or his pride, Anubimon growled for them to stay back, almost being pounded by Burial Vamdemon's massive fist in the process. Actually, it had been the perfect opportunity for the jackal god. The sinister metal vampire plowed his fist so deep into the floor that he couldn't pull his hand back in time to avoid Anubimon's white-hot blade. It seared his flesh and cut clean through. Burial Vamdemon released a bellowing roar, now officially sans mains, and reeled back. In his fury, the jutting turrets attached to his shoulder blades were thrown open and the Crimson Mist was fired from them. Anubimon bounded a great height to evade the bloody cloud. Unfortunately, his staff could not be saved and was caught in the red vapor, melting into a formless puddle of metal. The jackal god swore inwardly. With his staff gone, it automatically eliminated 2 of his techniques.

Arukenimon, having regained consciousness but was too weak to hold her digimon form any longer, slipped back into her gijinka and slowly lifted her pained neck to see what was going on. Though her vision was blurred, she could make out the image of a familiar gray-skinned digimon contrasting itself. "Uhn…… M.. Mummymon..?"

The god of death responded to his predecessor's title and was overjoyed to see his lady in red alive and well and smiled a toothy smile. "Arukenimon! GAAAHKK!!!"

While his guard was down, Burial Vamdemon whipped his scorpionesque stinger across Anubimon's midsection, ripping a deep lesion and throwing him to the floor. The vampire flicked the blood and detached skin from his stinger and snorted. **"Hmph. Change, indeed. The only thing you've changed is your clothes. Prepare yourself…"**

The metal vampire started towards him again, turrets opened and on standby to unleash Crimson Mist again. Anubimon clutched his heavily bleeding laceration and staggered to his feet, barely able to stand. He was losing too much blood in too short a time. At this rate, he probably wouldn't survive the next ten minutes, much less the battle with Burial Vamdemon. Taking his claw away from the assuredly mortal wound, Anubimon flexed his pecs and shouted: "Lapis Laser!!" The four blue stones emitted a thin beam of blue light, each meeting at a center point, then forming a much larger beam headed straight for the vampire. Unfortunately, the jackal god's aim had been off, and Burial Vamdemon barely had to sidestep to avoid being hit. Looking smug, he shrugged with the remains of his shoulders.

Realizing it was an all-or-nothing situation, Anubimon played his trump card…

"Final Judgement!!"

The atmosphere shifted to the familiar black void his predecessor had seen in those 'nightmares,' though only he and Burial Vamdemon could see it. All else had no knowledge that anything had changed. The metal vampire looked around, not knowing what to make of this strange, dark place.

"Burial Vamdemon!" The jackal god called to attract the evil one's attentions. "…It ends here…" He extended his arm and made a squeezing motion with his hand. Suddenly, the giant bloodsucker jerked violently, grimacing in pain. Anubimon 'squeezed' a second time, then pulled his arm back. With a horrible, ear-piercing scream from the vampire, a softball-sized pulsating orb emerged from his chest and floated to the death god's hand. He raised his free hand in the air, and brought it back down with a free-floating golden scale, balanced by a small, white feather. The jackal rolled the glowing ball- Burial Vamdemon's DigiCore, his heart, his soul—onto the opposite end of the scale. As expected, it outweighed the feather. Anubimon shook his head.

"Your heart is heavy with evil and darkness," he spoke in an ominous tone. "I'm afraid you can no longer be allowed to exist in this life." 

Before the metal vampire could even open his mouth to protest, Anubimon extended his arm once again, and placed his palm over the dark DigiCore, vaporizing it. With the destruction of his soul, Burial Vamdemon disintegrated into data, and the dark void dissipated back into reality.

The Chosen Children, their digimon, the children harboring Dark Spores, and even Arukenimon, cheered. The evil which cast a shadow over both worlds for such a long time was final destroyed. Anubimon allowed himself a brief smile- a hero's smile-, then fell face down and his form vaporized to reveal Mummymon, on the verge of death. Gasping, the children, both Chosen and not, started towards him, but were quickly blocked by the digimon, simply gesturing towards Arukenimon as the reason why. Though still disoriented somewhat, she staggered to him as quickly as possible and kneeled at his side. He did not hear her approach. It was getting hard to hear much of anything now.

"Mummymon… You idiot…"

"Hmm..?" He opened his eyes to behold the sight of his beloved. "Oh… Arukenimon… I'm so glad… you're all right…" He breathing became shallower with every word.

"You just had to go and fight with Burial Vamdemon, didn't you..? Had to go and be the big hero, didn't you? You… idiot…" Her voice was shaky now, as she fought back tears of anger, sorrow, and regret. Mummymon chuckled. "Yes, I suppose it was rather stupid of me… It's my own fault… for not being… more careful. I'm sorry. Gah…" He winced, the wound of his undoing shouting out its existence once again as it bled rivers.

Arukenimon clenched her fists and trembled. "No!" She shook her head. "Sorry isn't good enough! Why did you do it, Mummymon?! Why, why, why?!?" 

With the final shake of her head, the lady in red's dark shades flew off her face to reveal a clouded pair of tearful violet eyes, threatening saline floods. Mummymon's eyes widened in awe. "Your eyes…" He used what strength he had to bring a gentle paw to her face. "They're beautiful, but… those tears… Are they for me?"

"Baka," she hissed, allowing herself to lean into his touch angrily. He smiled almost sadly and breathed, "I'm honored…" Her heart broke, and the silent tears streamed down her pale face, moistening her skin and her withering companion's, as well. When she opened her eyes, she was horrified to find that he had begun disintegrating into data. His feet had already gone, and his legs were soon to follow.

"Listen, my Arukenimon," the mummy began in his final moments, talking as swiftly as his breathing would allow. "Please… don't cry for me. I knew this would happen, but… this is… what I wanted. …I don't have any regrets, and… I don't mind dying… if it's for you. But, please… don't be sad… If you wait a while… I'll be back, and… things will be… how they were before… just you… and me… together." There went his hands, his arms… "…Good-bye, my dear… I love you, always…" His eyes shut, and his head fell, and then went him. Where once there laid a Mummymon now laid nothing but a river of blood.

Arukenimon knelt there, not comprehending fully what had just transpired. But then, it hit her as hard as Burial Vamdemon had, and she took her face in her gloved hands and wept. All in that dimension felt the womon's sorrow, but none could understand it, appreciate it. Or perhaps they could. He did save them all, however unintentionally. Still, they would never know what had been shared, what **hadn't** been shared, how many wrongs she had done him, how many times she had heard those three magic words from him, and how many times she wished she could bring herself to say the same. All she could do was mourn now…

* * *

Thanks to Anubimon's misguided laser assault, a hole had been blasted in the strange dimension they were trapped in which uncovered the Digital World on the other side, a fact brought to their attention by the young Gennai, who, by no explanation, managed to drop in on them. After dealing a few more hits to the breach, courtesy of the Chosen Children's digimon, they all entered the barren and bleak Digital World. After an inquiry as to what that other world had been from little Iori, it was brought to light that that world had been the power to wish. Oikawa, feeling anguished for causing such trouble, wished to use what strength he had left to replenish the Digital World and watch over it, always. The children- Chosen and not- returned to their own world, and as for Arukenimon?

Many, many moons passed since the events of that time…


	7. 'Welcome Back, Mummymon'

****

Power is a Black Dog

By Son Rhandi

Chapter 7: 'Welcome Back, Mummymon'

"So, you think he'll hatch today?"

"I wouldn't be here if I didn't."

"But you're here everyday."

"Today's different. Oikawa came to me and told me to come down here."

"Heh. I see. There's nothing quite like having a digital deity, is there?" The red porcupine chuckled, continuing to care for his charges. The lady in red sighed. This waiting game was making her anxious, excitable, and she wished she could discharge those feelings.

Her wish came true, it seemed, as the blue and gray DigiEgg cracked down the middle. Elecmon's ears perked up, knowing that sound all too well, and trotted back to his previous location to get a looksee.

In a puff of smoke the egg disappeared and left behind a cradle with a gray head and feet poking out from under a pyramid shell inside. The tiny digimon yawned, showing only a few teeth and opened its eyes for the very first time, and as if fate decreed it, the very first person the digimon cast its eyes on was a woman dressed in red.

"Hello," she said, bent over with a smile. "I trust it hasn't been too long, Pyramon. Do you remember me?" The little digimon blinked, gaining a questioning look on its face. After a few seconds, his lips parted in what had to be the widest smile anyone had ever seen.

"Arukenimon!!" He shouted gleefully in a scratchy voice and hopped into her arms while Elecmon laughed, never having seen a newly hatched digimon quite so happy before, but this one had good reason to be. "Arukeni!" He shouted again. "I've waited sooooo long to come out! I wanted to see your eyes again! Will you show them to me?"

The lady in red smiled a sad smile and said to him, "When you become Mummymon, then I will show them to you again." That didn't seem to be a problem for the little fellow, and he went about grinning up at her ecstatically.

"Elecmon…"

He looked up at Arukenimon. She didn't said anything, but by the way she was clutching Pyramon, he could interpret her message. He lowered his head a bit to talk to the hatchling. "Say, Pyramon, how would you like to go with Arukenimon?"

"Would I ever!!" He chirped. "Let's go, let's go, let's go!!" Elecmon laughed heartily. "Okay, okay! Arukenimon, take good care of him! And let's hope for all our sakes that you never have to come back here!" The electric rodent chortled and waved a cheery good-bye to the two, Arukenimon doing a less enthusiastic version of it. And with that, she turned to leave the Primary Village.

* * *

Many weeks passed and many miles passed. From the primary stage of Pyramon came the goomba-like In-Training form of Ankhmon, and from Ankhmon came the Rookie land tadpole, Styxmon. From Styxmon came the Champion Monochromon-sized dog-crocodile-lion mix, Amuhtmon, and that was where they were.

The Digital World was a big place, good for roaming, which was what they did. Living out the rest of her life as a vagabond wouldn't have been her first choice, but if she had someone to travel with, then it didn't matter to her, and nor did it to Amuhtmon, who was just happy to be alive. Though they ran into their fair share of trouble, they rarely fought. With the kind of past they both possessed, they had had enough of that.

The two were passing through a dense forest- the same forest as the last time, but that hadn't dawned on either of them- as day turned to night, and found a suitable clearing to sleep in. Amuhtmon's stiff fur didn't make for a good pillow, but at least he generated a lot of body heat, which was her primary source of warmth on most nights. The cold grabbed Arukenimon this night, however, and roused her from her slumber. It came as a bit of a surprise to her to find that she lay in the clearing instead of at Amuhtmon's side. Brushing the grass from her dress, she got up to look for him. Big as he was, he shouldn't have been too hard to spot, even under the cover of darkness.

"Amuhtmon?" She called to him, but received no answer. She tried again, a little louder this time, but still bore no fruit. Arukenimon became a little worried. She had already lost him once before…

__

Go south towards the river, Arukenimon…

"Hmm? Oikawa?" Divine intervention: such was expected from time to time with the history they shared. Heeding his words, she traveled south to the river, but found nothing but…

"Mummymon..?"

"Hmm?" The blue clad digimon turned in her direction. "I was wondering when you'd notice I had left…" He parted his lips in a toothy grin. "How long has it been, my dear?"

"In human terms, about five years…" Time slowed itself and her steps became heavier and heavier with each advance, as if the universe was frightened for her. The man in blue blinked and looked into the moonlit river. "…I'm sorry I took so long."

"You don't have to apologize," she sat down next to him, gazing at her own reflection in the water. "I figured our human DNA would take some time getting through the barrier to the Digital World if we ever… So, it wasn't as if I wasn't expecting it."

Mummymon nodded in response. The silence becoming awkward, he kicked his heels at the arrangement of hydrogen and oxygen molecules and said, "…I'm sorry I made you cry that day, Arukeni… That is the only regret I have. I love you, and seeing you- my impenetrable fortress- cry broke my heart…"

The spider woman smiled meekly. "Even the best built fortress is bound to crumble given enough time, and five years is a long time to spend reflecting on things, Mummymon," she turned away from him. "I have my own set of regrets, too." Arukeni trailed a finger in the dirt as she continued, Mummymon listening intently. "I regret… not being able to tell you how sorry I was. Sorry I treated you the way I did, sorry for always keeping so much to myself, and sorry for never saying it back…"

"Saying what back, my dear?"

Arukenimon raised a hand to her face and removed the dark shades that had covered a beautiful part of her for much too long. He instantly found himself captivated by those violet eyes of hers, and brought a hand to her cheek, just like last time, except this time, they were under better circumstances. Taking a deep breath, the lady in red closed her eyes and uttered the words that pride had locked up for so many years…

A strong wind blew and the leaves of the trees rustled loudly. The only ones who heard anything other than the sound of those rustling leaves were the man in blue and the lady in red, and whatever was heard by them became a memory of the wind…

FIN

* * *

**http://cashman_g.tripod.com/fanart/mine/digimon/anubimon.jpg** Go here to see a pic of Anubimon. 

****

http://cashman_g.tripod.com/fanart/mine/digimon/ankhstyx.jpg Go here to see a pic of Ankhmon and Styxmon.

****

http://cashman_g.tripod.com/fanart/mine/digimon/amuhtmon.jpg Go here for a pic of Amuhtmon.

**http://cashman_g.tripod.com/fanart/mine/digimon/archmumm_winter.jpg** For some winter fun Mummymon style, go here.

(All drawn by yours truly, btw! Please don't take w/o my permission!)


End file.
